Too-early football preview for Tribune-area teams

o ensive line is averaging a weight of 260 pounds. Nooksack Valley could be coming for it all, but we will see how it shakes out.

Ferndale Golden Eagles e Golden Eagles play in a tough classi cation. e 3A slate of teams in Washington is a gauntlet of talented teams, but Ferndale has always been right there. e Golden Eagles are losing a lot of talent for the 2023 season. e Golden Eagles use a power-run, multi-option style of offense, so they will be able to remedy their situation into a success. ible second half of the year to ght their way into the 1A state championship game against Royal. e Mountaineers are losing some of their best players, like lineman Ethan Larson, running backs Marcques George and Brady West and quarterback Landon Smith. at being said, Mount Baker is a football school and a staple in the NWC. ey also have Ron Lepper as head coach and he is one of the best that you will nd.

Last season, Ferndale blew out Kelso in the opening state round to move on in the tournament, but dropped their next game against eventual state championship contender, Eastside Catholic.

Landen Hatchett, Jake Mason and Isaiah Carlson will all be gone next season. at is two UW commits in Hatchett and Mason and UCLA commit in Carlson.

Mount Baker did not win the championship, but it was an outstanding accomplishment to get there.

Mount Baker will have to nd some new assets in the skill positions but they will be set up in the trenches.

Meridian Trojans

Meridian had a tough time competing with the other 1A schools in the Northwest Conference. Mount Baker, Nooksack Valley and LC all handled the Trojans quite easily.

Nathan Schumock

Sports Editor

WHATCOM COUNTY — With the fall sports seasons rapidly approaching, I thought it would be proper to do a too-early football preview for the Northern Whatcom County teams.

Let's take a quick look at the six Tribune-area schools and see how they will stack up this year.

Lynden Lions e Lions are coming o backto-back 2A state championship wins. Everyone knows that, but it is worth stating anyway.

It seems like the Lions should not be able to repeat their success year after year, but I am con dent they will. Somehow, they always reload talent and make a deep playo run.

Lynden is losing a handful of key players from last season's team. ose of note include; Troy Petz, the human Swiss army knife, Lane Heeringa, the bruising running back and linebacker, Campbell Nolte, the other half of the running back/linebacker duo, Isaiah Stanley, who was the best wide receiver on the team, Kobe Baar the heat-seeking missile safety, Dane Gatterman all-pro left tackle and Kaeden Hermanutz dualthreat quarterback.

I left out a lot of players, but those are just some that the Lions will miss in 2023. Despite all of that, I think they will be just ne.

Brant Heppner will be the primary quarterback for the Lions and his sophomore season was something to watch. He is arguably the purest passer in the Northwest Conference and with another year of experience under his belt, he will be able to elevate the Lions of- fense even more. He also is a running threat in the Lynden o ense and is a menace in short-yardage situations with his big frame. ey have other important returning players too. Charlie Ayers could serve as the second QB and be a frightening rushing threat for other teams. Additionally, Luke Human at running back and Kuyper Assink will be a staple on the o ensive and defensive line.

Additionally, the Lions have an enormous roster from their varsity down to their C-team. ere will be plenty of new standouts to note when fall comes around.

Plus, they have Blake VanDalen and one of the best coaching sta s in the county and probably the state.

Lynden will be back and will be just as strong as they always are.

Lynden Christian Lyncs ey will be bringing back their star quarterback Jeremiah Wright and linebacker/tight end Kayden Stuit. Along with Tyson Bajema and numerous up-and-coming LC stars. e Lyncs will again be battling with Nooksack Valley and Mount Baker for the top spot in the 1A Northwest Conference. It will be fun to watch them ght it out in the fall.

LC had an outstanding 2022 season that ended in a fairly strange way.

For those that need a reminder, Lynden Christian, Nooksack Valley and Mount Baker were pitted against each other in a Kansas City tiebreaker that ended with Nooksack Valley and Mount Baker advancing to the state tournament. LC, unfortunately, had to go home.

We all know that LC was one of the best 1A football teams in the state and would have been better than 90% of the other squads in the state tournament. at is not to take away from any other contestants, just pointing out that LC was a very talented team that fell short in the end.

LC will come back strong this season. ey are losing USCbound Kade Eldridge, Tyler Sipma star DB and WR and many others.

Nooksack Valley Pioneers e Pioneers are losing very few players as they head into the 2023 season and are going to be a blast to watch.

It is safe to say that Nooksack Valley is the favorite in the 1A Northwest Conference division.

Joey Brown will be the starting quarterback for the Pioneers again. e dual-threat QB had an excellent 2022 campaign and helped lead the Pioneers to the 1A state championship semi- nal game.

Joey Brown excels with his legs, his athleticism makes him a threat with every touch of the ball. But, do not be surprised if you see his brother Evan Brown throwing the ball this season. Evan Brown has a superb arm and could be a good gadget piece for the Pioneers.

Additionally, top receiver Jackson Bennett is returning as a big piece in the Pioneers’ o ense. He will also bring a presence at defensive back.

One of my favorite players to watch last season was Colton Lentz who was just a sophomore.

Lentz is poised for an explosive junior year as the starting running back and strong-safety hybrid. Lentz will be the bell cow of the Pioneers’ run game and a hardhitting ruthless defender.

Not to mention, the Pioneers’ ey still have Talon Bungard and Conner Walcker in the back eld and out wide and Bishop Ootsey at QB. ere just might be a few holes on the o ensive line that need to be lled.

Ferndale has an excellent coach with Jamie Plenkovich at the helm and he can keep the team as a contender.

Mount Baker Mountaineers e Mountaineers were the Cinderella story from the 2022 season. Mount Baker used an incred-

However, outside of the NWC, the Trojans performed quite well nishing with an overall record of 6-4. is year, Meridian could be a dark horse. ey are a very young team who are only losing four seniors from the 2022 season. ey will have Jaeger Fyfe coming back at quarterback as a junior and he will help lead the Trojans o ense. I think Meridian could surprise some people down the line.